A tale in the Wynter
by Medusalith Amaquelin
Summary: I have been broken. Into so many pieces I don't know if I can ever be put back together. I have done so many wrongs, can my soul ever be redeemed? Is there hope for me, or am I just a tale told on a cold winter night, barely remembered by the tellers themselves? My oc's take on Thundera's fall, and life afterwards. Gore and language. Canon? What is that? I've never heard of it.
1. Chapter 1: Genesis

Hello, everyone! Medusa, here, back with another story! I'm still writing on "Love is Beautiful", but I had the idea for this story, and couldn't pass up writing it!

Enjoy!

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"Show yourself!" I hear the ring of a painfully familiar voice shout to me.

This is it.

Now or never.

I'm about to reveal my existence to the one man I've been avoiding for YEARS.

"How did I get into such a position" you ask? Well, I'll have to go back in time to tell you. Waaaay back.

It all started on a clear summer afternoon. I'd heard the rumors of a possible lizard army threat from the palace guards. You see, I'm a princess. Not of Thundera, mind you. Thundera only had two princES; Tygra and Lion-O. I'm a tiger princess. Many people believed that the tiger species had mostly died out, but it wasn't so. Others did not know of our existence, high in the mountains north of the kingdom of Thundera.

I came from the "Balrajïv" clan. The way our order of nobility works is there is a tiger "Majaraj", or king who is the main ruler, and there are about ten clans under him. There are two main rulers between two split clans, the "Balrajïv" clan, and the "Javan" clan.

I belong to the Balrajïv clan, who was last ruled by the great Majaraj known as Rajïv Savïdo. He had four sons, the eldest being named Balraj Savïdo, second eldest named Sammohan Savïdo, second youngest Ravïd Savïdo and the youngest being Dargo Savïdo. Naturally, Balraj being eldest, was in line for the throne, but he had OTHER..."interests" he was pursuing, currently. Large chested, long legged, pouty lipped "interests". Okay, I'll just say it strait out: he was a heartbreaker/man-whore combination.

All of the princes were very, VERY attractive - like, seriously attractive- but the eldest who had the most responsibility acted like a goofy teenager, half the time.

Anyway, as I was saying before, there are the different orders of nobility.

1: Majaraj

2: the Majaraj's offspring

3: any co-ruler under him (aka, other kings/chieftains)

4: government officials; i.e. money handlers, diplomats, market monitors, etc.

5: and last but not least, the Guards.

I was the eldest of the daughters of the Chieftain, Cairid Mondalï. I had sisters; Spring, a thin framed, fairly tall, beautiful tigress, Summer a curvy-thin, tall, and gorgeous faced golden tigress, Autumn, who had a darker, richer colored coat than Summer or Spring, a fairly tall height, and a thin frame with moderate hips and an unbelievably small waist-line, and, not to mention absolutely _perfect_ facial features, and then there was me.

I was plain, compared to them. During my teenage years, I was a bit chubby, and I had an oval shaped baby-fat covered face, with naturally pitch-black rimmed eyes. Pitch-black rimmed and quite _massive_ ice-blue eyes. By the time I was eighteen, people guessed my age to be only thirteen, because of my huge eyes and baby-fat face. I was always moderately tall, but I was chubby enough that it didn't really show.

I had snow-white fur, with pitch-black stripes, white-gloved paws where the white reached to my elbows, as well as white hind-paws that went up to just below my knee, where the stripes slowly faded into view from off-white, to grey, to black. My hair was long, down to my upper thigh, and a mixture of stormy-black and lightning-white. It was blended in so much that it looked kind of like greyish-ash, instead of black and white, but when you separated the different strands, you could tell. As for my name? I'll tell you later, but I believe you're smart enough to catch on as to what it might be, even before I say.

As I was saying before, our kingdom had heard of the threats to Thundera, but we didn't take them seriously.

This particular afternoon, I was sixteen, sitting outside of the palace in the beautiful thriving forest-like kingdom below. I wandered the streets often, mostly because I was the least remembered of the sisters. I might've been eldest, but I wasn't anything particularly special. Honestly, if it weren't for the "eldest-must-be-in-line-for-the-throne" rules, I think father would have made Autumn his heir. She was a year younger than me, but people often thought she was eldest, and that she'd make a far better queen than "that plain, white, brat" of a sister she had.

I smelled something delicious in one of the vendors I passed, and just had to buy a bit to share with my sisters.

"Three, please." I told the lady working the stand, holding up a sack of coins.

"That'll be thirteen coins." the lady stated with a kind smile.

I fished through the sack, and produced the payment she asked for.

"Thank you, young lady. Have a nice day!" she chirupped.

"You too!" I sent her a smile over my shoulder, as I dashed home to share the contents of the bag with my sisters. Unfortunately, at that moment I wasn't paying attention, I managed to run smack into the chest of someone.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry! I didn't see-"

"Well, well, well. If it isn't princess fatass, herself." I heard an all too familiar voice state with malicious glee.

"Oh, no." I silently groaned. It was HIM. The biggest jerk in Tigaera. A very attractive, but incredibly hateful guy known by the name of Shalo Gondara. He was actually a fairly nice guy to everyone, and even to me at one time, but a year ago, after I spread some rumors to the girl he was interested in -I let jealousy get the better of me, okay? I wish I could reverse it, but I can't- rumors that made him sound like a bully specifically, he decided, and I quote, that "If that's what I thought of him, that's what he'd be to me". He hasn't layed off the teasing since, only finding new and creative ways to practically break me. He knew how to strike a nerve and boy did he ever strike them. I miss his friendship, and how we were before, but I can't change anything, now.

"What's kitty got in the bag? A sack full of extra fat for her already massive ass?"

that disgusting prick goaded.

"Go away, Shal." I groaned.

"Aww, but I wanted to play. Besides, I'm hungry right now, and you really look like you could stand to lose quite a few pounds. Mind if I relieve you of them?" he mock asked, snatching the bag of hot cakes from me.

"Hey! Give those back! I was gonna give them to my sisters!" I yelled, jumping up trying to reach the bag that he held just high enough it was out of my reach.

He laughed at my antics, of which served to make him hold the bag just in my reach, and then quickly snap it up when I reached for it.

"Aww, so jealous you're trying to make them fat now? Well, I care enough for your sisters to not let you do that. Besides, not just anyone has such nice, firm asses and legs as they do. I've often wondered how tight they are..." he said, seemingly going into a daydream just thinking about it.

"Shut up, idiot! Those are my sisters you're talking about!" I roared, disgusted with this perverted idiot. "You. Will. Not. Touch. Them." I growled.

Unfortunately, he didn't take me seriously, only laughing at my coded threat.

"Or what? You'll sit your fat ass on my head?" he sneered. "Oh. Oh no. Please, don't let fatzilla sit on my head!" he cowered in mock fear, while his band of loyal followers just laughed their asses off.

I growled, slowly feeling my sanity break. One more joke. Just one more freaking joke, and he's dea-

"Give me the bag, Shal," a deep voice interrupted my train of thought, that was currently focused on the many ways to castrate a tiger male with a rusty knife. Who did that voice belong to? Wait... is that-

"Dargo? What the hell are you doing here?!" Shal voiced my very thoughts out loud.

My gosh, the Prince is PERFECT! Gorgeous eyes, perfect strait strong nose, thick lips, perfectly strait, thick and white fangs, long black eyelashes, perfectly arched eyebrows, beautiful stormy-blue eyes, well-defined thick and strong jawline, messy spiked shiny black hair, gorgeous, muscular, incredibly well-toned body... mm... delicious...

"Visiting this tribe. Why? Is the son of the Majaraj not allowed to do that? Are there laws against it? It seems that I'd know if there were any..." he stated, dryly, interrupting my reverie.

"But- I-I mean-"

"I'm looking into the possibility of marriage that the Chieftain proposed to me. My father is considering letting me court the beautiful Princess Autumn," he stated, simply, interrupting Shal's unfinished sentence.

At that moment, I almost zoned out entirely. Father was already considering Autumn's marriage? Usually eldest got married, first. I should be "considered for marriage"! But, of course, I'm too fat and plain for any worthy males to be interested. Especially someone as incredible as the Majaraj's son.

Majaraj's son! Oh my ancestors, I looked at him!

You see, generally, a lower ranking female of my status is not allowed to look upon the Majaraj or his sons or daughters or wives, much less speak to them, unless ordered to by them. And I just broke that rule. I don't know if I could've broken it any worse! I practically OGLED him.

Ooh, ancestors, take me now.

"Now, are you going to give me the bag?" Dargo asked, a hint of warning in his beautiful, silky, deep voice...

Reluctantly, and with a slight glare at the ground, Shalo handed it to him.

"Thank you, for your cooperation." Dargo smirked.

Oh, ancestors, I'm looking again! I really need to stop!

I immediately snapped my gaze to the ground, praying he didn't catch me looking.

"Here you go." he purred softly to me trying to hand me the bag, which was hard to grab when you couldn't see it.

I accidentally grabbed his wrist instead, and nearly had a freak-out. I gasped sharply, trying to apologize while not speaking at the same time.

"Oh, for Pete's sake. Just look up and grab the bag," Dargo said, exasperatedly. "It's not like you didn't look before, anyway."

I immediately snapped my gaze to him -an undoubtedly horrified look on my face- to see him smiling devilishly, as I attempted to pick up my jaw that had just dropped to the floor.

I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry feeling before I started my blabbing, which I could pretty much never quell.

"O-oh... my gosh. I'm sooo sorry! I-wasn't-thinking-and-I-guess-I-just-kind-of-stared-so-yeah-sorry!" I rambled off as fast as an auctioneer.

He chuckled, smirking his famous smirk and said, "You're fine. I never really understood the rules, anyway. I won't tell of that occurrence, if you won't," he flashed me a short wink that turned my stomach to mush and my knees to jelly.

"U-um, sure. Yeah, no problemo. Won't tell a soul," I promised, my hand drawing an 'X' across my heart and my face feeling hotter than the Caracarian deserts.

"Okay. Mind if I accompany you back to the palace? Me and my father have a meeting with Chieftain Cairid," he stated.

"U-um, no I don't mind," I stuttered politely.

"Alright, then. Let's go, shall we?" he smiled.

"Of course," I said, and we were off, heading for the palace, all the while I was trying to keep back the squeal that was threatening to break past my lips. I was standing next to- no, I was actually WALKING with THE PRINCE DARGO!

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Tell me at least one of you got the quote from "The Avengers"? C'mon, guys. Black Widow's jab at Loki? No? Oh, well. If you _did _get it, meet me know in a review!


	2. Chapter 2: The Cheshire Cat

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We were almost back to the palace now and it was almost dusk, the sky glowing a beautiful pink and orange.

Quite a few times as we walked on our way, there were many females who either giggled, whispered to their friends about, stared at, or catcalled Dargo, choosing to either ignore me, glare daggers, or make some hateful comment about "that fatass walking with the Prince". I just ignored most of them, choosing to simply stay in my own world of thoughts, and from what I could see, Dargo mostly ignored them too, choosing to only either smile or nod politely or send a disapproving look to the meaner of the females.

I was currently lost in thought about the whole "I'm trying to court Autumn" thing that Dargo mentioned earlier.

I mean, I was heir to the throne but father was looking to get Autumn married before me? And yes I might seem jealous, but for good reason. She was beautiful, I was not. She looked tall, I did not. She was altogether perfect, and I was not.

I'll have to ask father about this, if not now then later.

"We're here," Dargo said, smiling slightly.

"Already?" was all I managed to get out.

"Yes. We've been walking for quite some time, now," he responded, not unkindly.

"Oh," I stated, simply, looking up at the side of the mountain. Unlike most palaces, ours was built into a mountain. All of the corridors and rooms of the cave had been constructed and remodeled to provide us with a beautiful palace. It was hidden in the mountain, so almost no one could find it unless they already knew where it was. It was a bit of a safety precaution.

"So. Before we go in, what is Autumn like? I met her once and she seemed very kind, but is there anything I should know about her?" he asked sounding genuinely unsure.

"Um, she's kind, loyal, smart, perseverent, respectful, and honest. She can get mad, but it's a hard task to accomplish and when you do, run for the hills. The apocalypse is coming." I stated, dryly.

He chuckled lightly, a warm look in his eyes. "I'll take heed of that advice, thank you," he smirked.

I just smiled slightly forced in return.

"Oh, and before I go in... do I, um, y'know, look okay?" he asked timidly.

"You look wonderful." I stated, shortly, another forced smile on my lips.

"Good. Thank you," he breathed a sigh of relief. "I should probably get to the meeting before my father sends his arsenal to haul my butt to him," Dargo laughed lightly, a beautiful sound if I do say so myself.

"Um, right. I suppose I'll see you around, then," I say hopefully.

"Hopefully. If your sister is interested, then you'll probably see me before our dates. I really hope she gives it the 'okay'..." he purred fondly, staring off into space. "She really is beautiful, isn't she?" he asked no one in particular.

"Yes. She is," I said, shortly.

"I'll see you around, perhaps," he said, walking off with a spring in his step.

"Yeah, sure..." I mumbled, walking into the palace with him and heading for my room.

My ancestors, is he head-over-heels for Autumn!

"Hello, sister!" stated a familiar voice.

Well speak of the devil, herself...

"Hi, Autumn! How are you doing?" I asked, looking down a little bit, at my sister. What? She is shorter than me! Only by a couple inches, but still...

"Wonderful! I just heard the news that Price Dargo Savïdo is looking to court me!" she squealed in excitement.

"Yes, he is. I actually just met him on my way home. He seems very polite." I say.

"Oh my gosh. You've met him?! What's he like? What does he look like? How does he talk? Is he cute? Handsome? Even better? Give me the details!" she prattled on.

"Okay, okay. Calm down, and I'll tell you. You're going to meet him in a few minutes, anyway," I attempt calming her. Taking a deep breath, I start.

"Well, he's very kind, from what I've seen a very honorable tom. He has gorgeous stormy blue eyes, long black eyelashes, a perfect strait and strong but not too big nose, high cheekbones, a strong and well-defined jawline, perfect arched eyebrows, thick lips, beautiful messy black hair, a strong neck, broad shoulders and chest, chiseled arms, and from what I could tell under his clothing he looked very chiseled. He had nice, strong legs too! Not stick-like at all! His voice is deep, rich, silky and altogether perfect, and to go with it, I've heard he has a very kind personality, part of which was displayed just today," I blab on, partly daydreaming.

"He sounds perfect!" she cooed.

"He is," I concur.

"Wow. He sounds like a real Prince Charming." stated a younger voice.

"Summer?! How long have you been there?!" Autumn demanded.

"The whole time, Auti. Also, I've snuck around and seen him. He's really handsome! You should definitely say 'yes' to his offer to court you," Summer said dreamily.

"Oh, ancestors." Autumn groaned.

I just rolled my eyes and chuckled at their antics. "You know what? I'm not sure why I came back right now. I was going to a cloth shop, but I forgot." I stated, handing them the bag of hot cakes. "I got these for you girls if you want them."

"Aww, thanks, Wyn!" Summer cooed.

"Thank you," Autumn added in her thanks.

"I'll see ya later!" I shouted, skipping off down the halls, to eventually reach outside.

I waltzed out into the fresh air, taking a deep breath. It was beautiful, now, almost twilight. The sun was down, and you could just barely feel the cool breeze that would surely be freezing in about three hours.

The night creatures were chirping and clicking, and the smell of many foods had filled the streets. Many people were out this fine night, and -thank my lucky stars- the linen store was still bustling.

I was heading for the door to the linen shop, only to find a massive crowd of... mostly females?

"What on earth..?" I thought aloud. "Why are there so many women?"

"...hahahaha! I would be obliged to 'assist' a beautiful lady such as yourself." I heard a strangely familiar voice state. It sounded familiar, similar to Dargo, but a note deeper. Older, perhaps, with a slightly smoother edge.

"Who the heck got all the women, here? Even Shayera took off!" I heard an unwelcomed voice question, and looked back to see none other than Shalo standing behind me.

"I have no idea," I made an attempt at being civil towards him.

"Huh," he grunted. "What are YOU doing here?" he asked me, his voice less hostile than usual, but still accusing.

"I was just getting linens to sew. I have no idea what the others are doing here," I answered.

"...come along, brother. We really must get to the palace." I heard another voice state, this one similar to the last, but slightly deeper and more gravelly, with a guttural edge, and yet it sounded younger than the first.

"Hey. Watch where you stand, girl!" some rude stranger male elbowed me out of his way.

"Excuuuuussseee ME sir!" I drew the sentence out. "YOU should watch where you're GOING." I growled, but almost immediately shut up, after hearing another voice speak.

"Oh, come now, Sam. Let's enjoy the lovely ladies, while we're here!" the other voice exclaimed. It sounded slightly younger than the first two, but still deep, with less gravel than the second voice. "They seem eager to spend some time with us!"

I heard the second voice groan to that statement.

"Oh, drat it. I can't see an ancestor damned thing, so I'm just going home!" I grumbled to no one in particular, starting off towards the castle once again.

After quite a while, I heard some of the guards shouting to the people to clear away in order for the gentlemen to be able to move along. I paused to look back, but I still couldn't see much, so I started off again.

Only, of course, to pause once again, when I thought I heard voices behind me. I shook off the notion when they quieted down, just heading for the castle, only to hear even MORE voices, and not only that but footsteps, too. This time, I spun around, only to trip on one of the stupid rocks in the road and twisted my ankle, falling headfirst to the ground, I quickly put out my elbows in a planking position, fully prepared for the impact, only to find none. Just the feeling of strong, large, calloused hands gripping my shoulders.

"Are you alright?" I heard the deep, gravelly second of the voices from earlier ask me.

"Oh, just peachy." I replied with sarcasm dripping from my voice.

The hands helped me stand up, and only then did I get a good look at the owners of the voices from just a moment ago.

Sammohan, Balraj and Ravïd Savïdo.

My already large eyes widened so much, they probably looked like a comic strip, or like they were about to bug out.

"You should probably watch where you step," Sammohan -whom I now knew to be the owner of the second voice as well as the hands that caught me- stated with a beautiful smirk.

"Well I didn't WANT to trip." I challenged, a mild growl coming into my voice. The brothers were hotter than the sun itself, but this one was already starting to get on my nerves. Maybe it was just my own insecurities getting to me.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were looking to get a black eye, or something. My mistake," Sammohan stated with THE snarkiest edge I'd heard in a while, hands held up in mock defense.

"You know what, Your Royal Highness?" I questioned with a sarcastic, sloppy curtsy, "Why don't you take that glorious golden crown of yours and shove it up your-"

"Whoa whoa whoa! Calm down, kitty!" Ravïd interrupted me Sammohan just sitting there with a slightly stunned look on his face, probably at what I was just about to say to him, Balraj snickering in the background.

"Don't... call... me... 'kitty'." I hissed dangerously.

"Okay... um, what's your name, then?" he asked me, politely.

"Wynter." I stated, curtly.

"Why does your name sound familiar?" Ravïd had just opened his mouth to reply, when Sammohan cut him off.

"Well, there is the season you know," I arched an eyebrow at him.

"No, I mean from something else..." he mumbled.

"Well, I have three sisters," I suggested. "Spring, Summer, and Autumn." I raised my eyebrow again, waiting for him to catch on.

He furrowed his brows a second, before a look of realization dawned upon his face.

"Ooooohhhh..." he exclaimed.

"Yeah, 'oooooohhh'." I replied to his unintelligent response.

"So that's why you're headed for the palace?" Balraj asked.

"No shit, Sherlock." I replied to his obvious question.

He just kind of glared at me, after my response.

"Well, I've got to head to the palace. It's dinner time in a few minutes." I said, turning on my heel to walk away.

"We're going, too! Like us to come with you?" Ravïd asked kindly.

"It's your life." I responded, already a good distance ahead of the brothers. I heard their jogging footsteps behind me just a second later.

"Hi. What took you so long?" I asked with a smirk pulling at my lips.

"Hardy har har." Sammohan fake-laughed.

We entered the palace just a moment later, to be greeted by the smell of spices, both sweet and spicy assaulting our noses. It smelled delicious! I could smell meats, breads, vegetables, fruits, cakes, sweets, and pretty much every food you could imagine.

"Wow. It smells amazing!" Balraj exclaimed.

"Of course! That's because the cooks are amazing," I stated as though it were an everyday fact.

Balraj just sent me a slightly retarded looking sarcastic smile in response. I just kind of arched an eyebrow to that. "You need a stool softener, or something?" I asked with a hint of snark in my voice. He looked taken aback, whilst Sammohan just coughed into his elbow suspiciously.

Ravïd rolled his eyes and turned to face me. "You know, it's not every day we meet someone like you." he stated, straight to the point.

"What do you mean, 'like me'? Incredibly well-bred, impeccable manners, and perfect dialect?" I asked sarcastically. Wow. I'd been doing that a lot today.

"Not... exactly." Ravïd smirked. "More like, 'smartass, challenging, crude, and yet obviously strong and independent'." he says, smiling.

"Hmm, I'm trying to decide on whether or not that was an insult," I said softly while eyeing him suspiciously.

"Both, kind of. I mean, most people don't have the guts to even look at us, -aside from that... erm, 'interesting' crowd, earlier- and you just stand there, blatantly insulting us. I know it sounds terrible, but it's actually refreshing," he said thoughtfully.

"Uh, you're... welcome?" I asked unsurely with a small, nervous chuckle.

"It's good. Strange, but good," he said then walking on.

"Huh." I grunted, genuinely stunned.

Balraj sent Ravïd a rather "Since-the-hell-when?!" styled look, and Sammohan just raised an eyebrow.

I just blinked once and walked off to get dressed for dinner. I got to wear my favorite blue dress, tonight! A beautiful royal blue silk material dress, with sleeves just to my elbows, and the hem down to my heels. It had several pleats along the torso, that fanned out beautifully towards the hemline of the dress, and it dipped into a low scoop on my neck just barely, tentatively revealing the top of my cleavage. My hair was tied into a tight, thick bun except for two small braids that were pulled together from where my bangs might be if I had them and reached around my head to be tied into the bun. The bun was tied with a simple royal blue band that the maids tied vine-like ice-blue strands of material to, and rapped it up along my two small braids. My feet were adorned with beautiful ice blue jewels and cloths. My lips were painted a simple shade of medium coral, and my eyes were left mostly untouched, beings I never needed anything to coat my eyelashes. They had always been black and of course there were my black tear-like markings around my eyes that meant they didn't have to be lined. The only thing put on my eyelids was a little bit of light eye powder, a slightly blue tint complimenting the color of the dress as well as my eyes. My already dark eyebrows were always well-arched, so they didn't need color or shape. I wore a simple royal and ice blue necklace.

I looked into the mirror and gasped. I looked almost pretty! The dress appeared to thin down my waistline, and my hair looked beautiful! My face didn't look bad either, the eye shadow making my eyes pop and the lipstick giving my thick lips an almost alluring look. If it weren't for the size of my dang eyes... oh well, c'est la vie.

After one final glance over, I headed down to dinner, but not before bumping into my sisters in the hallway.

Autumn looked BEAUTIFUL. She had on a burgundy dress that hugged her curves in all the right places. It was a scoop neck, sleeveless style floor-length dress that went almost to the edge of her shoulders, baring the beautiful, slender curve of her neck, as well as her collar bones. It dipped into her ample cleavage just barely and showed off the curves of her amazing physique. She had beautiful amber and golden jewels around her ankles and feet. She wore an amber necklace that made her puppy-dog-brown eyes pop, and had her hair cascading down her back in loose, beautiful brown curls.

Summer wore a white dress, down to her knees, with lace for sleeves. It was a high, round necked dress that had pleats that looked beautiful on the skirt. She had gorgeous pink and green jewels around her ankles. She wore a necklace of pink jewels that set off her beautiful, golden stripes very well, and complimented the rose-gold of her eyes and her hair was worn in a low ponytail.

And then Spring, the youngest of us, at only thirteen wore a beautiful baby-pink dress, with long sleeves. It was crew-neck styled and it reached just above her ankles. She had blue jewels and cloths adorning her feet. She wore a blue, ivy styled necklace, the vine-like look making her look like a sort of... well, Spring Goddess as well as emphasizing the beautiful gold of her eyes.

"You all look beautiful!" I exclaimed.

A chorus of 'thank yous' ring through the halls and we all head to dinner together.

All throughout dinner, I could barely eat. Autumn and Dargo kept sending each other tentative smiles or 'come-hither' looks. It was nauseating. Even Sammohan looked annoyed after the twentieth or thirtieth glance, while Ravïd just sort of sat back humming different romance songs I recognized sarcastically, and Balraj just rolled his eyes so many times, I was surprised they didn't just roll right out of his head.

At one point, father glanced my direction, and I fake gagged just for him. He sent me a disapproving glance whist the brothers just snickered, Dargo and Autumn blissfully unaware of the surrounding goings-on, and King Rajïv stuck in a conversation with one of the maids.

After another hour of completely undeserved torture for us, father finally seemed to finish dinner. Good! Now, perhaps I can have a word with him.

As we exited, I made sure to be second to last to exit the dining room. Father was always last.

"Milord, may I have a word with you?" I asked my father, formally.

"Of course, daughter," my father replied warmly, setting himself for a conversation right then and there.

"I meant privately..." I trailed off.

"Oh! Of course!" he stated, an almost indistinguishable line of worry forming between his brows.

When we reached one of the corridors that had been abandoned for the evening, I started talking.

"Father, it has come to my attention that Autumn has... interested suitors..." I began.

"Yes? Is there something wrong with them, or more or less, him?" he asked.

"No! Not at all! I was just wondering... were you looking into her... marrying him, shortly?" I asked cautiously.

"Yes, actually. He seems like a very nice young tom. Very honorable," father stated.

"You do know that it's generally tradition for the eldest to be married first, correct?" I question.

"Yes. Why?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"Father... I don't even have anyone considering my hand in marriage! And you're just going to marry her off like that?!" I had to strain to keep my voice steady.

Father sighed, saying, "I knew this was coming. See here, Wynter. You're a very nice young girl, but Dargo has shown his interests in Autumn. Me and the council have talked, and considering Prince Dargo's rank as well as interest in her, we've agreed that... it would be best if Autumn were to be queen. Not... you." father stated slowly, as if talking to a child.

All I could do was stare, my mouth agape, absolutely stunned. He had just... renounced me as heir?! How dare he! I was his rightful heir, not that perfect little twit!

"How..." I could feel the sting of the tears forming in my eyes. "How could you?!" I asked, incredulously.

"It was for the best. Besides, now you don't have the weight upon YOUR shoulders," he stated as though he were trying to do me a favor, or at least make it appear as such.

I could feel the sobs trying to shake my body as I desperately tried to hold back the waterfall of tears that had formed. I started backing away, slowly at first, as my hands clenched my mouth in an attempt to keep from sobbing outright.

"Your highness, my father said... I'm sorry am I interrupting something?" I hear Shalo's voice start, and look up to see him finally glance down at me, a horrified expression dawn on his face the moment he sees me.

"No, actually Shalo, me and Wynter were just done, here," the king replied.

I couldn't hold it anymore. First, I cry in front of my king, now even Shalo catches me crying?! Without thinking, I bolted out of the corridor, and straight towards the side exit of my hom- the palace, sobbing the entire way.

"Wynter! Wait!" I could hear Shalo's voice behind me, as well as his running footsteps.

I didn't wait. I just ran faster, almost losing him and making it to my favorite tree. I climbed to the highest branch I could reach that was almost to the top, and sat, sobbing my lungs out and just barely holding back wails of pure agony.

My father, my own flesh and blood had practically disowned me!

"Wynter!" I heard Shal's voice cry out again, and I don't even have to glance to know he's climbing the tree.

I feel him reach my branch, and just sit next to me putting an arm around me in a sort of half-hug. I was only mildly shocked by his actions, but I quickly went back into my own bubble of self-pity.

"What happened?" he asked, gently.

All I could do that he'd comprehend was shake my head 'no'.

"Okay, okay... calm down... shhhh... it'll be okay..." he soothes beside me.

After a few minutes, I managed to finally calm down my sobs to nothing but dry heaves every now and then, and I finally spoke.

"I'm not the heir, anymore. My fath- king, that is, practically disowned me," I exaggerated.

"What?!" Shalo sounded stunned.

"You heard me..." I respond simply.

"Why?" Shalo asked gently, practically floored.

"He thought Autumn would be a better queen," I answered with a sad smile. "He's probably right."

"Wyn, listen. You might be annoying at times, but you're-" he started.

"Don't even try to give me one of those ridiculous clichéed pep-talks. He did what he did because he thought it best for the kingdom. That's it," I grumbled.

He just glanced at me skeptically, which I returned.

"Why are you being nice to me?" I inquired.

"Because you need someone to comfort you," he responds.

I just sigh and hop down from the tree.

"Where are you going?" he hopped down after me.

"Away," I respond shortly.

"To where?"

"I don't know."

"For how long?"

"I don't know!"

"What will you do there?"

"I don't know, okay?!" I snap. "I'm leaving, and I might not come back at all. I don't know yet. Just, don't... come looking for me." I state.

I think he says something else, but I ignore him, heading into the castle, into the room I slept in once to get good fighting and traveling clothes, pack them in a sack and then walk out the back door and into the woods to disappear, like the Cheshire Cat.

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Oh, and thanks so much **frankannestein ** for the first review! Virtual peanut butter and/or chocolate chip cookies to you!

TTFN!

~Medusa~


	3. Chapter 3: A desert stained Crimson

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About one year ago, my father had renounced my title as heir to the throne. I wandered around Thundera for three months before I found a group of cats calling themselves 'The Rebels'. They were a group of soldiers to the crown who didn't rebel against the throne, but they didn't necessarily agree with it, either. They did detest evil, and never joined the lizard's side. There were seven of us. Four females, three males. There was an attractive, sultry female Panther, with brown hair and a thin but muscular build who went by the name of Panthilla, a lovely Clouded Leopard known as Cloudia who had striped golden and brown hair and a muscular frame, a stunning Snow Leopard by the name of Storm who was smaller than us but still an incredible fighter with black hair always in a bun and a thin/curvy muscular build, a handsome Cheetah male by the name of Chalano who was tall with a brown mane and a build thinner than the other males but yet obviously incredibly muscular, a cute Lynx by the name of Lynus who was incredibly tall, broad and well-built with black hair, and an incredibly handsome Sabre-tooth by the name of Saboar who was absolutely MASSIVE in height as well as extremely broad-shouldered/chested enough to rival the build of King Claudus, with a lean waistline and strong, thick, muscular legs and beautiful sandy-blonde hair, and last but not least, there was me.

When the Rebels found me, I was barely even alive. I had grown dangerously thin from the lack of nutrition from being out alone, and poor on the streets, but they took me in, and bulked me up. I had been training for a while with them and had become an accomplished fighter. I was no longer chubby, but lean and muscular. My hips were still broad, but I learned to love how it added to the 'hourglass' edge of my figure. My long waistline had thinned, now well-chiseled with muscle, and my breasts stayed pretty much the same. Large, but not too large to be in the way of my fighting. My legs had gotten well-toned and shapely from the muscle I gained and after I lost a bit of weight I could see just how long they were. My face had quite a bit of baby fat still, but had thinned a little and my cheekbones now a little bit more obvious, and my lips now appearing almost unbelievably pouty and my nose still sharper than I cared for, but small enough to appear charming, and my eyes still as big and innocent as ever. I now looked more mature altogether, though, and I was very proud of it. I looked... beautiful... stunning, even. It surprised me after time how much I'd changed.

I was currently in the middle of training with Saboar when Panthilla stepped into the training room.

"Tonight is the celebration, guys. Apparently that sabre-tooth Grune has returned," she stated.

"I don't like him," Sab grunted in his deep, guttural timbre. "There's just something about that broken toothed weirdo that gives me the creeps."

"Agreed," I concurred, taking a sip out of my water bottle.

"Well, are we going or not?" Pan asked.

"I don't know. Ask the others for their votes. I'm neutral," I say.

"I'll go if you all go, but if we don't I'm good, too," Sab grumbles.

"Okay, so Sab and Wyn are neutral. That leaves Lynus, Chalano and Cloudia," Pan mumbled to no one in particular. "Oh and I heard some of the guards in the city say that lizards have been spotted just a mile outside of Thundera," she added.

"I think we're okay on training, for today. You should go get cleaned up Wyn, and we'll know the decision by then, as well as head out to see about the lizards," Saboar tells me.

"Okay. See you all in a few!" I yip, skipping to the showers.

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I return to the main room a few minutes later, fully cleaned and dressed in my black leggings with leather stripes down the side of the legs and a tight black t-shirt that was tight enough it revealed the muscle along my stomach, cloth shoes that bore my toes and heels, my hair done up in a high, thick ponytail and I brought my utility belt to strap to my hips and several packs of throwing stars and daggers that I was going to strap up and down my legs. I also brought my bow and arrows and my twin sais to strap to my back, fully prepared for a possible fight against the lizards.

"I'm out," I announced to the six cats in the room.

"Good. We're heading out to see about the lizards. We're still undecided on whether or not we're going to the celebration, this evening," Chal states.

I glanced up to see Saboar over in the corner broodily sharpening his daggers, appearing to completely ignore us even though I knew he heard every word we spoke.

"Are we going, or what? We really should check up on those lizards," Cloudia whines.

"Hold on there for a minute, sunshine. We still have other things to decide on," Lynus addresses Cloud.

"Yes, other 'things' that could easily wait until later to be decided on," Cloud bites back.

"Calm down, you two! First let's go see about the lizards, preferably BEFORE they get into trouble, and THEN we'll decide on what we want to do about the celebration this evening," Storm announces. "What do YOU think of that arrangement, Saboar?" she addressed the appointed leader of The Rebels.

"It would appear to be the most logical course of action," he responded, never taking his eyes away from the blades he was sharpening.

"Good. We should be on our way, then," Storm orders.

After that we all pretty much lumber out the back door, before finally going into more of a stealth mode, so as to get out of Thundera's limits without being seen. Saboar is one of the stealthiest of the team -despite his large size- being one of the more experienced fighters/strategists, Storm easily being the most stealthy, because of her smaller stature and lesser weight. I was incredibly good when it came to stealth, if only because I had learned to walk quietly as well as having my sais which I could manipulate the magical qualities it possessed in order to appear invisible, the only thing of my features I could show if I wanted to being that of my eyes and a cat-like maniacal grin that I had stolen from the stories of the Cheshire Cats my mother had told to me many a stormy night. A very powerful race of felines that once existed, having very strong magical abilities being able to perform such simple tasks as move an object with their minds, or the more complicated tasks being that of manipulating things such as the elements. The one thing _every _Cheshire was known to do, though, was turn everything about themselves invisible except for their glowing eyes and a maniacal fanged grin. They were a remarkable race of cats and it was devastating when they were obliterated by a rumoured entity by the name of Mumm-Ra. It was said that their power rivaled that of his own, and so because of that he made sure they would never be a threat to him again. There were still rumors of mixed Cheshire/ThunderCat breeds living amongst the cats of Thundera, but they were so few and far apart no one knew if they were true. I was honored to have the chance of representing such amazing felines and yet at the same time, I felt unworthy.

We were almost to the secret escape out of Thundera and only a few minutes away from where it sounded as though the guards spotted the lizards, now, and I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins. It was an incredible, exhilarating feeling of which I usually got before a fight.

"Almost there, everyone. Be on your ready. I'll try to confront them peacefully, but there's no telling how they'll react," Panthilla cautioned.

We lingered back in the shadows a bit, letting Panthilla continue in order to talk to the lizards whose carts we had just spotted. Some of the lizards were dressed like soldiers of some sort, but there was one who was larger than the others, with an ugly maw, long arms and a pot belly. They all looked repulsive, but I couldn't put my finger onto why. Somehow, though, I sensed an aura of malice radiating off of the ugly, scaley creatures, and would have shouted my thoughts to Panthilla would it not have meant giving out our positions to the scaled beasts. There were strange buzzing carts of some sort, as well as strange, long and menacing looking things -weapons, I assumed- in some of their hands.

Panthilla and the lizards were only several hundred yards from where we stood, and we could hear what they said rather clearly.

"Excuse me? Um, I was wondering if you were in need of assistance of some sort," Pan tried to offer kindly.

"Go away, little girl. We are in no need of assistance from some kitten," one of the lizards addressed her.

"Then why are you right outside of Thundera? Surely there's a reason you're so close," Panthilla attempted.

"I am in no mood to speak, kitty. Now go home, before I decide to kill you," the ugly beast hissed.

"I'm sorry, but as long as you pose a possible that to the land in which my home resides, I'm. Not. Leaving." Pan stood her ground.

"Very well then, fool. You shall be the first of your brethren to go," the reptile snarled, raising its weapon to aim towards Pan's heart.

She leapt just out of the way in time for a strange bolt of energy to fire out of the weapon the lizard was holding. We all took that as our queue to join the fight, Saboar quickly dashing out and punching the first three lizards he saw, knocking them clean out, Chal came next, using the bladed ends of his bow-staff to stab right through the ugly beasts, then went Storm, her jiu jie bians practically obliterating every lizard they touched, next was Lynus, using his massive obsidian bladed sword to block, ricochet the enemies attacks, and stab them all ferociously, next Cloudia went out, using her katanas to ricochet the energy blasts back to the enemies injuring them instead of her, as well as stabbing them, and I hung back.

Yes, I hung back, but it was only so that I could pull out an arrow and start firing them from a distance. I was our marksman of a sort, usually only joining the hand-to-hand combat if I were truly needed for it.

I took a deep breath and let the arrow soar, meeting it's target perfectly.

Right in the hand of a lizard that was just about to shoot at Ly.

I fired three more, one after the other and hit three more lizards. After that, though, I saw Chal frantically holding up one paw, raising two fingers, signaling me to join the hand-to-hand fight.

I quickly replaced my bow to it's holster on my back, instead taking out my sais and quickly, invisibly, straying out into the fight. There was one lizard in particular that I noticed hanging back, putting some strange cartridge looking thing into his handheld weapon. Noticing this, I quickly grabbed his weapon twisting it at just the right angle and hearing several bones in his scaly fingers snap as I snatched the thing from his grasp, quickly using the butt of the weapon to hit him on the head. He fell into the buzzing cart, groaning and running his hand to the back of his head, bringing it back tinted a deep crimson.

"Who the hell's there?!" the freak of nature demanded.

"Your worst nightmare, I'm afraid," I hummed, letting my Cheshire face slip into view.

He looked up at me appearing horrified for a second, before quickly raising to his feet smoothly slipping into a battle stance.

I lowered my invisibility spell, dropping into a fighting stance of my own.

He threw a punch at me of which I quickly dodged and countered but not before he slipped his tail under my legs, tripping me. I quickly rolled out of the way of a kick he sent my way, hopping to my feet, and blocking another punch. He managed to quickly perform a forwards flip over my head, throwing a punch to my back that I just managed to turn sideways, grab his arm and flip him, hearing the bones in his arm shatter as I did so. He wailed in absolute agony, as I quickly reverse punched him in the head, efficiently knocking him out. At that, I headed after my next unfortunate victim.

However, I was the unfortunate one as I hadn't noticed the lizard that had creeped up behind me, who managed to put his tail just in front of my foot, tripping me to the ground. I stumbled down as the ugly beast grabbed my arms and pinned me down, his knees digging into my legs to pin them down as well.

"Finally caught the little bitch," he shouted to someone in one of the massive tank-like carts, but I barely even heard him. There was only one thing going through my mind at that moment: "Survive".

I strained my neck up just enough for my mouth to reach his arm and I quickly sank my teeth in, hearing him scream in pain as I did so, him falling off of me onto his knees and I reached around my back for my sais quickly, and without even thinking, I thrust it straight through his chest hearing the squelching hot crack of ribs and the slick, disgusting noise of it penetrating his internal organs as his blood spattered everywhere, gushing out of his chest. But that wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was his face. Scrunched up in horrified agony, a silent scream desperately trying to break out of his wide open mouth and punctured lungs, but not being able to. It was terrifying. I watched as his eyes glazed over, his body going limp with the strong scent of iron filling the air.

Blood. His blood. Everywhere. And only at that moment did I recognize the feeling of warm, sticky liquid all over my own clothing, but I knew I wasn't bleeding anywhere, and looked down to see the blood of the very being whom I had just killed soaking my clothing.

I felt my stomach convulsing before I even knew what was happening, throwing up everywhere. His face. The blood. The pain. I hadn't meant to kill him, but I did anyway, and it scared me how berserk I'd turned just to save my own life. I looked down to see my hands stained scarlet with his very life essence, and nearly broke down in tears.

I had just made my first kill.

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I didn't remember the rest of the fight. I just sort of sat back after that completely zoned out, moving on instinct alone. I remembered hearing the screech of the long armed, pot-bellied lizard, "Retreat!" and the sound of their strange wagons pulling away that were carrying the bodies of their fallen comrades. I knew I was overreacting. The others of the team had killed before, some even made kills today, but I couldn't help the gnawing feeling of guilt and remorse. I had killed a living, breathing creature just to save my own life. I felt dirty. Disgusted with myself. I barely even registered when my teammates walked up to me with confused looks on their faces, before they looked down at my paws and clothes. Then, it finally seemed to register with them. Chal had a look of pity, Pan looked mildly disturbed, Storm just glanced then looked away, her face unreadable, Lynus shared Chal's look of pity, Cloudia mumbled a faint "Oh. Sorry.", and Saboar had a look of hard steel. Indifferent, and uncaring. His message was clear; "We've all done it, now get over it."

I had to resist the urge to glare at him. I didn't want anyone's pity, but I also didn't want someone to be so callous. At the same time, though, I was glad he stayed strong. It made him annoying, but it also made him all the more... appealing...

Wait! Where did that come from?! Uh, never mind, but the whole thing was still sickening. We walked back to Thundera and our home, silent the entire way.

When we got back to the house we all unpacked, cleaned our weapons and clothes, and showered off. I was the last to shower and when I came back and sat down in the corner, I found myself studying Saboar.

He really _was _handsome, a strong chin and jaw, a strong nose that had obviously been broken a few times during some fights, a thinner upper lip and thicker bottom lip that was obviously scarred from his massive sabre-teeth, strong, high cheekbones, tousled medium length brownish-blonde hair, heavy brow-bones with well-arched brows, massive shoulders and chest that went down in a triangle type shape towards his waist, strong squared masculine hips, incredibly muscular thighs and well-shaped calves, a long, dark-golden tail, dark brownish-gold fur with vague brownish stripes, and one of his most surprising features were his absolutely beautiful, deep, forest-green eyes.

He WAS handsome in a dangerous way, there was no doubt about it. Handsome, even WITH the large scar running down his left cheekbone, over the edge of his lip, and down, just barely visible, by his jaw. It just served to add to his "bad boy" attractiveness.

I glanced down at his mouth, and for a moment, I wondered what it'd be like to kiss him... would he be gentle, or rough? Would his fangs complicate the process? ...Would his tongue taste good?

I quickly brushed away the thoughts, though. I should really stop thinking such things.

I had just realized I'd probably been staring too long when the very person I'd been ogling spoke up. Thank the ancestors no one else noticed.

"Do you need something, Wynter? Some popping corn, perhaps?" he asked sarcastically. "You've been looking for quite some time, now," he grumbled in his deep, gravely timbre.

"No, thank you. I'm just trying to figure you out. One day you act one way and I finally think I understand you, the next you're someone completely different. I don't understand," the half-lie was out of my mouth before I could comprehend what I was saying.

"Oh, don't even try to figure him out, Wyn. You never will. Believe me, I've tried. I gave up after so long, though," Cloudia stated, walking out of the kitchen.

"Oh, joy," I grumbled, acting to go along with the lie.

I glanced at Saboar out of the corner of my eye to see him eye me suspiciously, before going back to sharpening his throwing stars.

Good. Maybe he bought it.

After that, I headed towards my room to get ready for the celebration tonight.

I was in the hallway when I sensed a presence behind me. I paused, turning around I ran right into the torso of Saboar and would've nearly toppled over onto my butt had he not caught me.

"Oh! Sorry!" I state apologetically.

He only grunts out a very deep, barely audible "It's fine." before he walked around me, straight to his room. I watched him leave, trying not to notice his absolutely perfect butt, but failing miserably. When he reached his room however, I quickly turned around and practically leapt into my room -hoping he didn't notice me- as my cheeks blazed bright red.

What was this all about?! Why am I having these thoughts?! He's not even interested in me! ...at least, I think...

I walked into my room to get ready for the celebration in an hour, and to ponder over just what the hell I was feeling.

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Please review, follow, or favorite on the way out!

You guys have a wonderful day!

Ta ta, for now!

~Medusa~


	4. Chapter 4: Festivities

Hey, guys. I didn't like how the last version of this chapter turned out, so here's the new one. Tata!

* * *

It was time for the celebration, now. I wore a pair of causal but classy pants that emphasised my absolutely adorable rear and a red short sleeved shirt with my golden armor, and my hair was pulled up in a high, flowing ponytail with rubies strewn through it.

Cloudia wore a simple brown pair of pants and a brown top with her silver armor on over it, her hair done in a simple bun and wearing an amber necklace. An amber necklace that reminded me a lot of Autumn...

Oh well. I'm NOT going back there. At least, not yet.

Panthilla wore an emerald-green shirt and black pants with her silver and bronze armor, the top of her hair pinned up and over her head.

Storm wore a black shirt and blue pants with her silver armor and had her hair down with gorgeous sapphires strewn throughout her mane.

Chalano wore a handsome outfit, blue breeches and a long sleeved black shirt with his silver armor over it, his hair slicked back.

Lynus was wearing a very similar outfit, his pants black, with a deep red shirt with his silver armor over it, his hair done back in an army styled wave.

Saboar wore a black short sleeved shirt that revealed his deliciously muscled arms and emphasized his gorgeous torso, black pants that had several leather stripes across his thighs, knees and calves with obsidian armor that just exaggerated his already beautiful body even more, and a sword strapped to his hip. We all had swords, as a matter of fact, but I didn't know what we'd even need them for, but Saboar always told us to be prepared for anything. His hair was spiked up beautifully, and he had the red jewel of Thundera strapped to his belt. He looked like a dark warrior; fierce, brave, guarded, broody, uncaring and yet handsome. He always had his brows lowered so that you couldn't see his eyes particularly well, I think because he was ashamed of his incredibly expressive eyes. They were beautiful, though, and I hated to see someone ashamed of something about them that was so gorgeous.

We hopped onto our Thunderian mounts and raced off to the festivities.

Arriving only a few minutes later, the first thing we smelled was food, the first thing we heard was music, and the first thing we saw was a crowd. A very big crowd. I groaned at that. I HATED crowds. I suppose I should've known there'dve been one but I didn't expect it to be so big.

"Hey, guys? I think I'm going to try and-" I tried to say, but got cut off by a clerical tom, a puma by the looks of it.

"Good! They're here!" he shouted over his shoulder to what looked to be a soldier standing behind him.

"Wonderful! We've been awaiting your arrival, general Saboar!" the soldier saluted him. "The king has requested your specific protection. You and two other men will be guarding the entrance to the balcony of which he and general Grune will be standing on," the young soldier said straining to look up at Saboar, a look of awe on his face because the massive sabre-tooth in front of him.

"Very well. I will see you around later, soldiers," he addressed us all in his deep guttural voice, nodding at the other two soldiers.

We all watched as he walked off before we turned to go towards the balcony outside of the palace. We were a little bit late, as King Claudus's speech had already begun.

"...sent out Generals Grune and Panthro to find the fabled Book of Omens. While it remains lost, General Grune has returned with the tales of adventure, great treasure, and new lands to conquer." the King's powerful voice echoed, as he gestured towards the hideous crystalline rock. "Today we show him our appreciation!" Claudus announced.

I finally caught a look at the fabled General Grune and nearly shrieked in awe. He was just massive! Bigger than the king, even, with tattered ears, one fang as long as a loaf of crunchy bread and his other fang having been broken off, probably in some previous battle. The fangs jutted out of his lips and onto his rather thick, impressive beard. His body was just massive, covered in nothing but thick muscle underneath his brown coat of fur. The crowd cheered and clapped for him and as he stood there he bowed slightly, with one fist acrossed his heart.

"Wow. He sure is big, isn't he?" Pan whispered in awe. "Even bigger than Saboar!"

All I could do was just nod my head. He was huge! I had never seen a cat so big as him!

I watched as King Claudus seemed to signal something, and it made sense when I heard the orchestra start up. Animals seemed to run to and fro, getting food, dancing to music, or playing games. Me and the other Rebels as well as some of the other guards stood back, shoulders squared and backs ram-rod straight, faces unreadable as the people passed by. I saw some of the clerics pass us as well. I observed as some of the toms pointed over to a specific section, devilish grins on there faces, and I had to avert my gaze from the rather crass belly-dancers, choosing to watch the crowd instead. And good thing, too. I watched as a tom walked up beside a lady, feigned accidentally knocking over her purse and then proceeding to help her pick it up, only he took some of her money with him. Quickly, I walked up to the tom, my sword on my hip but ready, should I need to use it. The tom was only a bobcat, and I was actually several inches taller than him, so I could try and use intimidation, if need be.

"Excuse me, sir? Would you mind handing the young lady here back her money?" I tried politely but aggressively, my browline and jaw set and arms crossed.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. I don't know what you're taking about," he tried to deny my accusation, but I knew better.

"Yes, actually you know exactly what she's talking about, and she's not the only one who saw the occurrence. Now hand the lady the money and be on your way," I heard an eerily familiar voice command.

I just barely turned my neck and I felt my stomach drop. I had one hell of a fight to keep my features and posture composed as I turned around to see none other than Dargo standing a few inches away from me, Autumn just behind him, and the other brothers and my sis- the princesses behind her.

"Thank you for your help, sir, but I had the situation handled. You may go along and enjoy the festivities with the rest of the crowd, if you would like," I fought to keep the venom from my voice.

Dargo just raised an eyebrow, and turned around to face Autumn, but not before Autumn walked up to me.

"Excuse me, but you look very familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?" she questioned.

I saw the pick-pocket attempt a getaway, but my hand shot out and gripped his arm before he could go any further.

"I don't think so, ma'am. I'm usually stationed in different areas around Thundera, though. Perhaps you've just seen me at one of those locations?" I lied through my teeth.

"Yes, perhaps," she mumbled, eying me up and down.

"If you'll excuse me, I have an amateur thief to deal with," I stated, turning away from the horrible reminders of my past life.

"Of course. Have a nice evening!" Autumn stated cheekily, but still eying me.

"Good day, Madame," I bid them farewell and turned to the thief still squirming in my arms.

"Give me the money, fool," I spat impatiently. "I am in no mood for games!"

"I-I don't have a clue what money y-you're talking about," he insisted, but I saw his nervous tell, he was chewing the inside of his cheek.

"As I stated before, I am in no mood for your games, thief, and I WILL have you apprehended for lying to an officer of the crown," I growled, venomously. "Now, I'll speak slowly, and in small words so that your miniscule, pathetic little brain can comprehend; Give. Me. The. Money!"

He was shaking, now, practically wetting his britches. He produced the money from behind his back, as I released him from the death-grip I had just realized I had around his throat. I was actually lifting him off of the ground!

"Thank you so much, for your cooperation," I stated, and then nearly winced when I realized who had stated that once, before me.

I turned around to hopefully find the lady that had lost her money, and spotted her at a jewelry stand, engaged in what looked to be an argument with the owner.

I walked right over, and caught the tail-end of the conversion.

"...it was just here a minute ago! I swear!" she sounded distressed.

"Is this what you're looking for, ma'am?" I caught her by surprise. "I found some idiot trying to make off with it after he bumped into you."

"Oh! Thank you, so much! I had no idea where it was and if I'd ever get it back," the lynx woman breathed out in relief.

"No problem, young lady. Just be careful who you let help you next time," I said, even though she was probably two years my senior.

I walked off, after that, only to find the other soldiers and rebels gone as well as half of the crowd gone. I felt a wave of almost panic surge through me, but that calmed almost as soon as I saw the broad back of Saboar... walking with General Grune, King Claudus, Prince Lion-O and Prince Tygra, as well as two other soldiers whom I didn't recognize. I was tempted to walk up to him and ask what was going on, but decided against it. I would be stalling the King himself, and that would be humiliating. However, I didn't even need to walk up to him because Saboar actually GESTURED for me to come over to him. I tried taking a deep breath and steeling my nerves, but it was hard to remain calm with the King, his best General, the Princes' and you're crush's eyes on you the entire time, scrutinizing your every move. It was nerve-racking, to put it mildly.

I stepped strong, though, like a soldier should, and stood before them, face steely and gaze straight ahead, my arms held behind my back and my feet apart.

"Lieutenant Mondalï, the King has requested your assistance in guarding the gateway to the arena. You will be stationed with Lieutenant Cadrïd, Sergeant Shandala, General Arvind and Colonel Fadrïd. There will be field soldiers outside of the doors, should anyone try to break through and get passed them. You are there to guard the competitors, if need be. I know you will do your job well," Saboar states sternly.

"Yes sir, General Garthono," I saluted him. "Is there any other task you require of me, sir?" I had to fight go keep the sarcasm out of my voice.

"No, Lieutenant. You are released to your duties," he said, not amused in the least.

"Wait a minute there, girl," I heard the voice of none other than King Claudus, himself.

"Yes, your Majesty?" I inquired.

"He claimed your name was Mondalï, correct?" it was more a statement than a question.

"Yes, Milord," I answered.

"Why does your name sound so familiar? Who was your father, child?" he asked.

"I... don't usually answer such questions, but I suppose I must now. My father WAS known as... Chieftain Cairid Mondalï..." I stated, my voice low in shame.

I saw Saboar's eyes widen a fraction, obviously because I had never told him of my heritage, while the King looked stunned.

"Your father was Cairid?" he sounded surprised. "I heard he was the leader of the tiger rebels against Mumm-Ra..." King Claudus stated in awe.

"Yes, he was, Sire..." I mumbled.

"Then why do you speak of him as though you're ashamed? And more importantly, why are you here instead of with him?" it was Prince Lion-O to speak up this time.

"I have the answer to both of your questions, my Prince. He renounced me as his heir, and gave it to my younger sister because he thought she'd make a better queen," I stated bitterly. "I kind of figured he didn't really need me after that, so he sent me away," I twisted the truth.

"That's... depressing... I mean, you must've been devastated. Losing your father like that, and maybe even your sister too. You must feel awful," Lion-O prattled on.

"Thank you, for summing that up," I restrained from absolutely snapping at him. If I did, it could be considered disrespect of the crown. I already just said more than I should have.

"Oh... um, sorry..." Lion-O scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, Saboar looking almost appalled at what I'd said, Grune chuckling and King Claudus just laughing outright.

"I'm sorry about that. What my brother MEANT was 'sorry for all that's happened'," Prince Tygra interceded.

"It's fine, I do not need such things as pity. I'm... fine..." I state.

Tygra just glances at me, unconvinced.

"If you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I really need to get to the arena. Good day, your Majesties, Generals," I nodded my head to them politely, now on my way.

The inside of the arena, it was incredible. I'd never cared much for the games, but the arena itself was massive! I had to stay in the entrance, though, and I had just made it to the hallway past the entrance, seeing the others.

Alana Cadrïd was a Cheetah female of twenty five summers with black tear markings around her big blue eyes and down her button nose, with long golden blonde hair and a thin frame. She was beautiful, appearing almost delicate which was the real deception. She was anything but delicate, she was a true warrior maiden.

Then there was Jeried Shandala, a handsome male Jaguar of twenty three summers who was well-renowned for his incredible sword fighting skills and skull-shattering punches.

Next was Tyler Fadrïd, a good-looking Tiger male of twenty nine summers who was known for his insanely good aim with the bow and arrows, and incredible with a Three Point Staff, as well as an insanely good hand-to-hand combatant who was known for knocking people clean out with a single punch, as well as an incredible leader.

Then, last but not least, there was Scillo Arvind, a Snow Leopard of thirty summers who was an incredible leader, known for leading his team through the battle of the Pantherian River. He was shorter than the other males, but he had a good head on his shoulders, and incredible muscle. He was known for perfect form during his fighting, always loose and comfortable, being able to judge what your next actions would be by simply observing a certain twitch of the ear or tail, or any other appendages and/or body parts. He was shorter, but it kept him more well-grounded so he wasn't knocked out of a fight, easily and could perform the moves better. The only soldier known to beat him was General Saboar Garthono. General Arvind was renowned for his unnaturally good stamina, agility and reflexes. Scillo was amazing, to put it mildly.

"Oh. You must be Lieutenant Mondalï. You know, when I first heard there was a Lieutenant of only seventeen summers, I honestly didn't believe it, but from what I've heard you are a remarkably accomplished fighter and leader. Congratulations," Alana commented as I walked up to them.

"It's an honor to meet you, Lieutenant," Colonel Fadrïd nodded his head to me.

"Yes, you are remarkably accomplished for one of such a young age," General Arvind acknowledged.

"Yes, I was quite impressed by your accomplishments, myself," Sergeant Shandala acknowledged.

"Um, thank you... I'm just doing my duty, though, and I did train under one if the best," I stated awkwardly.

"Yes, General Garthono is an incredibly well-renowned General," Cadrïd stated, and the others nodded their agreement.

After that, we all just went to standing rigid, guarding the hall to the entrance of the arena.

We saw many different competitors, but the two that surprised us all most were Lion-O and Tygra. Yes, Lion-O and Tygra. All of us in the hall shared looks of stunned confusion, but didn't stop them. It was... strange...

We couldn't see the competition from where we were, but judging by the sound of the crowd, one of the brothers was losing, terribly. Me and Cadrïd secretly made a bet. I said that Lion-O was the one losing, she bet it was Tygra. And when the brothers came back into the hall one of them looking especially pissed off, I ended up with a sack full of money in my hand, and a smirk on my lips.

This had been a good night.

As a guard, I was one of the last to leave, waiting for our orders to do so from General Grune.

When he finally showed up, it was half past midnight, judging by where the moons currently were in the sky. Cheshire and Leo were shining brightly, and Panthera was finally showing her face.

General Grune approached us, followed by King Claudus behind him, and Tygra after him. I just assumed Lion-O was attempting to clean himself of the dirt that was caked in his fur after the games.

"You all did wonderful tonight, soldiers, and I would love to personally thank you for braving the long night of celebrations that was tonight. I hope you all sleep well tonight, but be sure not to make it back to the castle for training, because of it!" King Claudus' thanks sent a few scattered chuckles through the crowd of soldiers.

"Alright, men. At ease. You are released from your duties for the rest of the night. Now go, all of you!" Grune ordered us.

"Yes sir!" we all chorused and saluted in unison.

Little did I know what was awaiting me very shortly.

* * *

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TTFN!

_~Medusa~_


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